ISLAMABAD: Explosive Islamabad United batter Colin Munro on Wednesday smashed an 82-run knock from 47 balls to hand his team a thumping seven-wicket victory over the Karachi Kings at their home ground in the southern port city.
The two sides locked horns for the 15th match of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) contest in Karachi. The Kings, led by skipper Shan Masood, were unable to impress in the first match of this year’s PSL hosted in Karachi. The Kings were able to score 165/5 from their 20 overs after being sent in to bat by United.
Pakistani all-rounder Imad Wasim, a former Karachi Kings cricketer, Salman Ali Agha, Naseem Shah and Hunain Shah took a single wicket each to restrict the Kings to a modest total before Islamabad’s openers wreaked havoc on Karachi.
“Back-to-back sixes by Salman Agha and WE HAVE WON!” United wrote on social media platform X, announcing the franchise’s victory.
Munro and his opening partner Alex Hales smashed a 108-run partnership, leaving little doubt Islamabad would clinch the match. Hales was dismissed by Hasan Ali after scoring 47 runs from 35 balls, hitting four boundaries. Wasim fell to left-arm Karachi spinner Tabraiz Shamsi on the second ball, heading to the pavilion without scoring a single run.
Munro was the third Islamabad wicket to fall when he was trapped leg-before-wicket by Mohammad Nawaz. His 82-run knock included eight fours and four sixes.
United, who were placed at number five on the PSL points table, have gone up to the fourth spot ahead of the Kings with four points from five matches. Skipper Shadab Khan’s side will next take on the Quetta Gladiators on Saturday as it eyes climbing the PSL points table further.
The Kings will now face a strong Gladiators squad, placed on number two at the PSL points table, on Thursday. Placed now on number five at the PSL points table, they have four points from two matches with a run rate of -0.527.
The top four teams of the tournament will qualify for the playoffs.
Fiery Munro ensures Islamabad hammer Karachi by seven wickets in one-sided PSL contest
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Fiery Munro ensures Islamabad hammer Karachi by seven wickets in one-sided PSL contest
- Islamabad United’s Colin Munro smashes 82 runs from 47 balls to win Player of the Match award
- His opening partner Alex Hales scored 47 runs from 35 balls before Salman Ali Agha guided the team home
Pakistan PM orders accelerated privatization of power sector to tackle losses
- Tenders to be issued for privatization of three major electricity distribution firms, PMO says
- Sharif says Pakistan to develop battery energy storage through public-private partnerships
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s prime minister on Monday directed the government to speed up privatization of state-owned power companies and improve electricity infrastructure nationwide, as authorities try to address deep-rooted losses and inefficiencies in the energy sector that have weighed on the economy and public finances.
Pakistan’s electricity system has long struggled with financial distress caused by a combination of factors including theft of power, inefficient collection of bills, high costs of generating electricity and a large burden of unpaid obligations known as “circular debt.” In the first quarter of the current financial year, government-owned distribution companies recorded losses of about Rs171 billion ($611 million) due to poor bill recovery and operational inefficiencies, official documents show. Circular debt in the broader power sector stood at around Rs1.66 trillion ($5.9 billion) in mid-2025, a sharp decline from past peaks but still a major fiscal drain.
Efforts to contain these losses have been a focus of Pakistan’s economic reform program with the International Monetary Fund, which has urged structural changes in the energy sector as part of financing conditions. Previous government initiatives have included signing a $4.5 billion financing facility with local banks to ease power sector debt and reducing retail electricity tariffs to support economic recovery.
“Electricity sector privatization and market-based competition is the sustainable solution to the country’s energy problems,” Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said at a meeting reviewing the roadmap for power sector reforms, according to a statement from the prime minister’s office.
The meeting reviewed progress on privatization and infrastructure projects. Officials said tenders for modernizing one of Pakistan’s oldest operational hubs, Rohri Railway Station, will be issued soon and that the Ghazi Barotha to Faisalabad transmission line, designed to improve long-distance transmission of electricity, is in the initial approval stages. While not all power-sector decisions were detailed publicly, the government emphasized expanding private sector participation and completing priority projects to strengthen the electricity grid.
In another key development, the prime minister endorsed plans to begin work on a battery energy storage system with participation from private investors to help manage fluctuations in supply and demand, particularly as renewable energy sources such as solar and wind take a growing role in generation. Officials said the concept clearance for the storage system has been approved and feasibility studies are underway.
Government briefing documents also outlined steps toward shifting some electricity plants from imported coal to locally mined Thar coal, where a railway line expansion is underway to support transport of fuel, potentially lowering costs and import dependence in the long term.
State authorities also pledged to address safety by converting unmanned railway crossings to staffed ones and to strengthen food safety inspections at stations, underscoring broader infrastructure and service improvements connected to energy and transport priorities.
